Finding the right counter at city hall | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Ik ben nog nooit in dit gemeentehuis geweest.

   I have never been inside this city hall before.

   Ik

   I

   ben … geweest

   have been

   nog nooit

   never before

   in

   in; inside

   dit

   this

   gemeentehuis

   city hall

   More detail

   Ik means “I” here, the first-person singular subject. Dutch subject pronouns include ik “I,” jij/je “you” singular, and wij/we “we.” The form ik identifies the speaker as the person who has or has not had the experience. ben ... geweest is the Dutch perfect construction used here for “have been.” ben is the first-person singular present form of zijn (“to be”); geweest is the past participle of that same verb. The participle is placed at the end of this main clause. For example: Ik ben daar geweest. — “I have been there.” Do not treat geweest as a form of gaan; in this sentence it is the participle of zijn. nog nooit is the fixed-looking combination meaning “never before” in this context. nooit means “never,” while nog adds the sense that this has not happened up to the relevant time. For example: Ik heb dat nog nooit gedaan. — “I have never done that before.” in marks the place where the experience occurred: “in” or “inside.” Here it introduces the interior of the city hall. Its exact English rendering depends on the place and context; it is not part of the verb construction. dit means “this.” It is the singular demonstrative used with a nearby or contextually identified singular het-word. Dutch contrasts dit with deze: dit huis (“this house,” a het-word) versus deze stad (“this city,” a de-word). The form dit itself does not mark the noun’s physical location; it marks the demonstrative agreement and the intended singular reference. gemeentehuis means “city hall” or “municipal hall.” It is a singular neuter noun, used with the article het: het gemeentehuis. Its plural is gemeentehuizen (“city halls”). In the sentence, dit gemeentehuis means “this city hall,” and the supplied translation specifies that the intended location is inside that building. Together, Ik ben nog nooit in dit gemeentehuis geweest says that the speaker has not previously been inside this city hall: “I have never been inside this city hall before.” The pattern is reusable as Ik ben nog nooit in [plaats] geweest — “I have never been in [place] before.”

2. Het gebouw is mooier dan ik had verwacht.

   The building is nicer than I expected.

   gebouw

   building

   mooier

   nicer; more beautiful

   dan

   than

   verwacht

   expected

   More detail

   gebouw means “building” here. Its base form is gebouw; the plural is gebouwen. Dutch commonly uses het gebouw because this noun is a het-word. Example: Het gebouw is oud. — “The building is old.” mooier describes the building as nicer or more beautiful in comparison with something understood from the context. It is the comparative form of the adjective mooi (“beautiful, nice”): mooi → mooier → het mooist (“the most beautiful”). Dutch normally forms this comparative with -er. dan introduces the thing or situation used for comparison. The reusable pattern is A is mooier dan B — “A is nicer than B.” Here, however, the comparison is with the speaker’s earlier expectation, not with a named second object. verwacht is the past participle of verwachten, “to expect.” In this sentence it appears with had: ik had verwacht means “I had expected.” The auxiliary had places the expectation before the later point of comparison, while verwacht supplies the main verb’s meaning. Example: Ik had meer bezoekers verwacht. — “I had expected more visitors.” The full structure is Het gebouw is mooier dan ik had verwacht: Het gebouw is mooier says that the building is nicer, and dan ik had verwacht compares that quality with what the speaker had expected earlier. Together, the sentence means “The building is nicer than I expected.”

3. De ingang is naast de fietsenstalling.

   The entrance is beside the bicycle parking area.

   ingang

   entrance

   naast

   beside; next to

   fietsenstalling

   bicycle parking area

   More detail

   ingang means “entrance” here. It is a Dutch noun; its plural is ingangen. The definite article is de: de ingang means “the entrance.” Example: De ingang is open. — “The entrance is open.” naast is a preposition meaning “beside” or “next to.” It introduces the place used for comparison: one thing is located next to another. Example: De stoel staat naast de tafel. — “The chair is next to the table.” fietsenstalling is a compound noun for a place where bicycles are parked or stored. Its plural is fietsenstallingen. The compound contains fiets (“bicycle”) and stalling (“parking/storage area”), but fietsenstalling is the established noun for the whole place. Example: Er is een fietsenstalling bij het station. — “There is a bicycle parking area near the station.” Together, De ingang is naast de fietsenstalling. says that the entrance is located beside the bicycle parking area. De marks both nouns as definite, and is is the singular present form of zijn (“to be”). This is a reusable location pattern: X is naast Y — “X is next to Y.”

4. Veel mensen zijn met de fiets gekomen.

   A lot of people came by bike.

   Veel

   a lot of

   mensen

   people

   zijn … gekomen

   have come

   met de fiets

   by bike

   More detail

   Veel means “a lot of” or “many” before a plural noun. It expresses a large, non-specific number; it does not give an exact count. Compare veel mensen (“many people”) with weinig mensen (“few people”). mensen means “people” here. It is the irregular plural of mens (“person”); the plural is not formed by simply adding the regular ending to the singular. Example: Veel mensen werken hier. — “Many people work here.” zijn and gekomen form the Dutch perfect construction here. zijn is the present-tense form of zijn (“to be”) used with the plural subject mensen; gekomen is the past participle of komen (“to come”). Dutch uses zijn rather than hebben with komen in this construction. The combination describes arrival in the past, which is naturally translated here as “came.” Example: Zij zijn vroeg gekomen. — “They came early.” met de fiets means “by bike.” met introduces the means of transport, and de fiets is the noun phrase “the bike”; the fixed phrase describes travelling by bicycle, not a particular bike that the sentence identifies. Example: Ik ga met de fiets. — “I go by bike.” Together, Veel mensen identifies a large number of people, zijn gekomen says that they came, and met de fiets gives the means of transport. The complete utterance therefore means: “A lot of people came by bike.”

5. Dat is logisch.

   That makes sense.

   Dat

   that

   is

   is

   logisch

   logical; makes sense

   More detail

   Dat is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “that.” Here it stands as the subject and refers to a situation or idea understood from the context; it is not necessarily a previously mentioned physical object. Dutch also uses dit for “this,” while dat points to something more distant in discourse or space. Example: Dat begrijp ik. — “I understand that.” is is the third-person singular present form of zijn, “to be.” The form agrees with the singular subject dat. Useful forms include ik ben (“I am”), jij bent (“you are”), and hij/zij/het is (“he/she/it is”). logisch is an adjective meaning “logical” here. After zijn, it appears as a predicate describing the subject, so it has no attributive ending in this sentence. Its comparative is logischer (“more logical”), and its superlative can be logischst or, commonly in a phrase, het meest logisch (“the most logical”). Example: Dat klinkt logisch. — “That sounds logical.” Together, Dat is logisch. literally describes “that” as logical. In natural English, the complete utterance is “That makes sense,” expressing agreement that the idea or situation is reasonable. The pattern Dat is + adjective is reusable: Dat is duidelijk. — “That is clear.”

6. Het is makkelijker dan op de bus wachten.

   It is easier than waiting for the bus.

   Het is

   it is

   makkelijker

   easier

   dan

   than

   wachten

   to wait; waiting

   bus

   bus

   More detail

   Het is combines het (“it”) with is, the third-person singular present form of zijn (“to be”). Here het is the sentence subject translated as “it”; the sentence does not identify a more specific referent. Zijn has the present-tense forms ik ben, jij bent, and hij/zij/het is. Example: Het is goed. — “It is good.” Makkelijker means “easier” here. It is the comparative form of the adjective makkelijk (“easy”): makkelijk → makkelijker (“easier”) → het makkelijkst (“the easiest”). The comparative compares two possibilities or situations; Dutch normally introduces the second side with dan. Example: Deze route is makkelijker dan die route. — “This route is easier than that route.” Dan introduces the second side of the comparison, meaning “than” in this sentence. The pattern A is makkelijker dan B means “A is easier than B.” It is different from dan meaning “then” in a time sequence; that other meaning must be determined from context. Wachten is the infinitive “to wait.” In op de bus wachten, the preposition op belongs with wachten and introduces what someone is waiting for; the complete expression means “to wait for the bus.” Example: Ik moet op de bus wachten. — “I have to wait for the bus.” Bus is the noun “bus.” Its usual definite form is de bus; de is the definite article, not part of the noun itself. Example: De bus komt. — “The bus is coming.” Together, Het is makkelijker says “It is easier,” and dan op de bus wachten supplies the comparison: “than waiting for the bus.” The complete utterance therefore means “It is easier than waiting for the bus.”

7. Volgende keer kunnen we hier ook naartoe fietsen.

   Next time, we could ride here too.

   Volgende keer

   next time

   kunnen we

   we can / we could

   hier

   here

   ook

   too / also

   naartoe

   to this place

   fietsen

   to cycle / ride a bicycle

   More detail

   Volgende keer means “next time.” Volgende is the form used before the time noun keer; together they make a reusable time expression. Example: Volgende week werken we thuis. — “Next week we work from home.” kunnen we contains the modal verb kunnen and the subject pronoun we (“we”). Because Volgende keer comes first, Dutch places the finite verb before the subject in this main clause: kunnen we. This is inversion after a fronted sentence element, not specifically question word order. Here the present-tense plural form kunnen expresses possibility, giving the fixed meaning “we could.” After a modal verb, the other verb normally remains an infinitive: We kunnen morgen fietsen. — “We can cycle tomorrow.” hier means “here.” It is a place adverb; by itself it identifies a place, without expressing movement toward it. ook means “too” or “also.” Here it adds this possibility to what is already under discussion: cycling here is included as well. Its position can affect what is especially highlighted, so keep its placement in mind when reusing the pattern. naartoe is a directional adverb meaning “to this place” or “to there,” depending on the context. With hier, the combination hier naartoe means “to here,” expressing movement toward the place identified as here. Example: Kom hier naartoe. — “Come here.” fietsen is the infinitive “to cycle” or “to ride a bicycle.” It follows kunnen because Dutch uses the infinitive after this modal. In hier naartoe fietsen, it means cycling to here. Example: We kunnen naar het station fietsen. — “We can cycle to the station.” Together, Volgende keer sets the time, kunnen we presents a possibility for “we,” and hier naartoe fietsen expresses cycling to here. Ook adds that this destination is included too. The complete meaning is: “Next time, we could ride here too.”

8. Dan kunnen we de fietsen dicht bij de ingang zetten.

   Then we can leave the bikes close to the entrance.

   Dan

   then

   kunnen we

   we can

   fietsen

   bikes

   dicht bij

   close to

   ingang

   entrance

   zetten

   put / leave

   More detail

   Dan means “then” here: it places the action in sequence with what was mentioned before. A useful reusable pattern is Dan + finite verb + subject ... when the sentence starts with a time or sequence word. kunnen we combines the modal verb kunnen (“can, be able to”) with the subject pronoun we (“we”). Because Dan comes first, the finite verb kunnen comes before we; this is a common Dutch word-order pattern after an initial element. The infinitive belonging to the modal appears later in the clause. Compare we kunnen ... (“we can ...”) with kunnen we ...? (“can we ...?”); the same forms occur, but their order and punctuation differ. fietsen means “bikes” in this utterance. Here it is the plural noun fiets (“bike”): fiets → fietsen. The article de is used with the noun phrase de fietsen; de itself is used with both singular and plural nouns, so it does not by itself establish the number. The same spelling fietsen can also be a verb form meaning “to cycle,” but that is not its role here. dicht bij means “close to” or “near.” It is a reusable way to express location, as in De stoel staat dicht bij de deur (“The chair is close to the door”). ingang means “entrance.” Its plural is ingangen; the noun in this utterance is singular, and de is the article used with it: de ingang (“the entrance”). zetten means “to put” or “to place.” It is the infinitive used after the modal kunnen. Dutch often uses zetten for placing an object somewhere; in this context, putting the bikes in that location is naturally rendered as leaving them there. Together, Dan sets the time sequence, kunnen we expresses the group’s ability or option, and de fietsen ... zetten describes placing the bikes. The location phrase dicht bij de ingang specifies where they are to be placed, producing the intended meaning: then, the speakers can leave the bikes near the entrance.

9. Voor nu gaan we naar binnen en zoeken we de juiste balie.

   For now, let's go inside and find the right counter.

   Voor nu

   for now

   gaan we

   we go; let’s go

   naar binnen

   inside

   zoeken

   look for; find

   juiste

   right; correct

   balie

   counter

   More detail

   Voor nu is a time expression meaning “for now” or “at this point.” It limits the action to the present situation; it does not by itself say how long the situation will last. Example: Voor nu blijft hij hier. — “For now, he stays here.” gaan we contains gaan (“go”) and we (“we”). After an initial phrase, Dutch commonly places the finite verb before the subject: Voor nu gaan we .... Here gaan is the present-tense form used with we. In this context, the whole expression naturally corresponds to “let’s go,” although it is not an imperative form. With ordinary subject–verb order, We gaan ... means “We are going ...” or, depending on context, “We are going to ...”. naar binnen means “inside” or “indoors.” naar marks movement toward a destination, while binnen identifies the inside as that destination. Together they describe going inward, rather than merely being inside. Example: We lopen naar binnen. — “We walk inside.” zoeken means “look for” or “try to find.” In the fixed sentence it is the present-tense form used with plural we; it has the same visible shape as the infinitive zoeken, but its role here is finite. Example: We zoeken een tafel. — “We are looking for a table.” The sequence gaan ... en zoeken ... contains two coordinated clauses: gaan we naar binnen and zoeken we de juiste balie. Thus zoeken is not an infinitive governed by gaan; it is the finite verb of the second clause. The verb–subject order in zoeken we fits the clause structure after the initial phrase and conjunction. juiste means “right” or “correct” here, in the sense of the appropriate or intended one. Its base form is juist; juiste is the attributive form before the noun phrase de balie. In this definite noun phrase, the adjective takes the -e ending: the relevant pattern is an attributive adjective before a definite noun phrase, not the article alone as a general rule. This meaning is different from directional “right,” opposite “left.” balie means “counter” or “service desk.” It is a noun; its plural is balies. In de juiste balie, the definite noun phrase identifies the counter intended by the description “right.” Example: De balie is daar. — “The counter is there.” en connects the two actions. The sentence first states that the group goes inside and then adds the coordinated action of looking for the appropriate counter. Altogether, Voor nu gaan we naar binnen en zoeken we de juiste balie. means “For now, let’s go inside and find the right counter.”